Resort Wedding RulesNot legal advice. Prices change. Resort packages, fees and terms change often and vary by resort. Confirm every price and condition with the resort's wedding department, in writing, before you book or pay. Disclaimer
Outside vendor fees
Bringing your own photographer, planner or hair and makeup artist is where costs jump.
| Brand | Outside vendor rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Hard Rock Complimentary Wedding Collection | $1,500 per third-party vendor, per service, per day (Punta Cana waives it if the vendor stays 3+ nights) | Official ✓ |
| Couples One Love (complimentary) | $500 for up to 2 people + $120 each extra; waived if the vendor stays 3+ paid nights | Brand snippet |
| Sandals Sweetheart (complimentary) | Third-party vendors prohibited | Official ✓ |
| Bahia Principe Joyful | Exclusive photography provider; outside photographers pay a destination-specific vendor fee | Official ✓ |
| Royalton Luxury Complimentary Wedding | $1,050 outside-vendor fee | Not confirmed |
Guests who don't stay at the resort
- Guest-stay quotas: Excellence 90% of guests must stay at the resort; Hard Rock and Iberostar 80%; Couples 70%; Sandals caps off-site guests at 20%. Royalton 75% and RIU 80% are from third-party sources only.
- Day passes: Hard Rock $156 per adult and $78 per child (2025 rates), off-site guests capped at 20% and out by 11pm. Couples $120 ceremony-only or $240 full day. Sandals gives off-site guests 5-hour event passes.
Legal and paperwork fees
- Sandals licence/admin fees by island: Jamaica $250, Barbados $440, St Vincent $485, St Lucia $495, Antigua $500, Grenada $535, Bahamas $600, Turks & Caicos $690 (Beaches), Curaçao $750 legal or $400 symbolic.
- Couples: $250 government fee; certificate copies $30; European apostille up to $200.
- Bahia Principe: $850 legal supplement.
- Hard Rock Mexico: $1,200 civil admin/government fee ($800 Vallarta); Catholic ceremony $650 to $1,500.
- Late documents: Sandals $150, Couples $200.
Day, time and late-booking premiums
- Sandals: Friday/Saturday +$250, twilight +$600, venues such as the Overwater Chapel or Sky Terrace $750.
- Excellence Everlasting Memories: Thursday to Sunday costs $1,500 more than Monday to Wednesday.
- Hard Rock: $1,000 fee if the free collection is reserved 30 days or less before the wedding; beach set-up fees $6 to $18 per person.
- Royalton: $100 Sunday fee (third-party source only).
Deposits and cancellation
- Sandals/Beaches: $250 non-refundable deposit; full refund 45+ days out, 50% at 44 to 31 days, nothing within 30 days.
- Karisma $300 and Barceló from $300, both non-refundable; Iberostar $500 non-refundable.
- Hyatt: $250 cancellation penalty within 6 months (from a search snippet of Hyatt's page).
⚠ Where the official sources disagree
Sandals Wedding Test Drive: $300 a night in the Terms & Conditions, $275 a night on the Sandals Jamaica weddings page. Details →
RIU prices: RIU's travel-agent sheet lists $1,099 to $9,599; a 2026 third-party page lists $2,099 to $11,399. Details →
Barceló Golden Sea: "From 10.000" with no currency shown. Details →
Free weddings that cancel other freebies
Excellence Lovebirds can't be combined with the complimentary honeymoon or anniversary package, and Hyatt's Wedding in Paradise can't be combined with its Honeymoon Package. See honeymoon perks.
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